SPENCER DAVIS,
1939-2020

Spencer Davis, the guitarist/bandleader who, with the help of singer/organist Steve Winwood, was a forerunner in the blending of American R&B and blues with British rock in the 1960s, died on 10/19. He was 81.

He died while being treated for pneumonia in a hospital in Los Angeles.

The group was known for the Winwood-sung hits “Keep on Running” and “Somebody Help Me,” both of which hit #1 in the U.K., and “Gimme Some Lovin’” and “I’m a Man,” which went Top 10 in the U.K. and the U.S.

After leading the Saints with Bill Wyman in Manchester, Davis moved to Birmingham, where he played American folk and traditional blues. In 1963, Davis and drummer Pete York recruited the 15-year-old Winwood and his brother Muff, who were working as a duo. They eventually went by the Spencer Davis Group.

Along with the Moody Blues, they were called “Brum beat,” distinguishing them from the bands in London and Liverpool such as the Kinks and the Who working with similar formulas. A residency at London’s Marquee club led to a deal with Fontana Records, which released their first three albums, in 1965 and ‘66.

After Winwood left the band in 1967 to form Traffic and Muff became a producer, Davis and York brought in Eddie Hardin and Phil Sawyer for an album, With Their New Face On, for United Artists. They disbanded in 1969, reforming in the mid-'70s and issuing two more albums.

Davis moved to the U.S. after the first breakup and eventually worked in the business at Island Records, where he helped develop Bob Marley, Robert Palmer and Winwood in his nascent solo career.

Davis resumed touring in 2006 and worked for more than a decade.